Google Doodle Marks Lantern Festival 2012 in Taiwan, Hong Kong

The Lantern Festival was celebrated on Google’s homepages with a special logo in Taiwan and Hong Kong today. The Lantern Festival falls on the 15th day of the first month of China’s lunar year to mark the end of celebrations for the Chinese New Year.

The Lantern Festival has been celebrated for about 2,000 years on the night of the first full moon of the year. Lanterns are created to depict the animals of the zodiac, warriors, and historical figures – or, in the case of the Google Doodle, to create the letters for Google's logo.

Lanterns also have riddles displayed for people to solve. The Lantern Festival is considered to be the Chinese version of Valentine’s Day. Yuanxiao, a glutinous rice ball, is one of the staple foods of the festival, as it is believed eating it will reward people with a good life.

About the author

Danny Goodwin formerly was Associate Editor of Search Engine Watch, where he also covered the latest search marketing and industry news. He joined Incisive Media in October 2007, in charge of copy editing columns that appeared on both Search Engine Watch and ClickZ. Prior to a life in the search industry, he worked in the journalism field, working in numerous newsroom positions, before later working as a freelance copy editor.